Vibrator device, oscillator, gyro sensor, electronic apparatus, and vehicle

ABSTRACT

A vibrator device includes a vibration element including a vibration portion and a fixed portion, a supporting member to which the fixed portion is attached to support the vibration element, and a first substrate to which the supporting member is attached, the supporting member includes a attaching portion attached to the first substrate, and A1≥A2 is satisfied in a case where an area of a rectangular region including the fixed portion is A1 and an area of a rectangular region including the attaching portion is A2 in a plan view seen from a thickness direction of the vibration element.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/926,571, filed Mar. 20, 2018, which is based on and claims priorityfrom JP Application Serial Number 2017-058706, filed Mar. 24, 2017. Thedisclosures of the above-identified applications are hereby incorporatedby reference herein in their entireties.

BACKGROUND 1. Technical Field

The present invention relates to a vibrator device, an oscillatorincluding the vibrator device, a gyro sensor, an electronic apparatus,and a vehicle.

2. Related Art

In general, a quartz crystal oscillator mounting a vibrator,particularly, a quartz crystal vibrator is used widely as a referencefrequency source of a consumer apparatus such as a mobile communicationapparatus such as a mobile phone, a radio wave timepiece, and an ICcard.

Since the quartz crystal vibrator is supported by a conductive adhesiveor the like in a package, in a case where an ambient temperature of thequartz crystal vibrator changes, the hysteresis occurs due to anoccurrence of a thermal distortion caused by a difference in a thermalexpansion coefficient with a container (package) in a supporting portionsupporting a quartz crystal vibrator element, and further, a differencein a degree of recovery of the thermal distortion between the supportingportion and the quartz crystal vibrator element in a case where thetemperature of the quartz crystal vibrator returns to an originaltemperature. That is, a hysteresis phenomenon of temperaturecharacteristics occurs such that it requires along time for a frequencyof the quartz crystal vibrator to return to an original frequency due toa stress from the supporting portion even when the temperature of thequartz crystal vibrator returns to the original temperature, or there isa difference in frequency-temperature dependence of the quartz crystalvibrator at a rise and fall of the temperature when the temperature ofthe quartz crystal vibrator changes reciprocally between t1 and t2.

JP-A-2014-33368 discloses an oscillator that supports the quartz crystalvibrator element on a pedestal portion having the same material as thequartz crystal and fixes the pedestal portion to the container in orderto reduce the thermal distortion caused by the difference in the thermalexpansion coefficient between the quartz crystal vibrator element andthe pedestal portion, and to suppress the hysteresis in the frequency ofthe quartz crystal vibrator due to the temperature change, andoscillates a stable reference frequency.

The oscillator disclosed in JP-A-2014-33368 can suppress the hysteresisin the frequency of the quartz crystal vibrator with the distortioncaused by the difference in the thermal expansion coefficient betweenthe pedestal portion of the quartz crystal and the quartz crystalvibrator element due to the temperature change. However, since thedistortion caused by the difference in the thermal expansion coefficientbetween the container and the pedestal portion of the quartz crystalcannot be reduced, there is a problem that the hysteresis in which thevibration characteristics with respect to the temperature changes cannotbe reduced sufficiently.

SUMMARY

An advantage of some aspects of the invention is to solve at least apart of the problems described above, and the invention can beimplemented as the following application examples or forms.

Application Example 1

A vibrator device according to this application example includes avibration element that includes a vibration portion and a fixed portion,a supporting member to which the fixed portion is attached to supportthe vibration element, and a substrate to which the supporting member isattached. The supporting member includes an attaching portion attachedto the substrate, and A1≥A2 is satisfied in a case where an area of arectangular region including the fixed portion is A1 and an area of arectangular region including the attaching portion is A2 in a plan viewseen from a thickness direction of the vibration element.

According to the vibrator device of the application example, when thevibrator device is subjected to a temperature cycle in which atemperature change between low temperature and high temperature repeatssuch as an in-vehicle environment, since the area A2 including theattaching portion of the supporting member attached to the substrate issmaller than the area A1 including the fixed portion of the vibrationelement attached to the supporting member, it is possible to alleviate adistortion due to a thermal stress caused by a difference in a thermalexpansion coefficient between the supporting member and the substrate,and to reduce the transfer of the distortion in which the substratereceives to the vibration element. Accordingly, when the device issubjected to the temperature cycle, it is possible to obtain thevibrator device in which the change in the vibration characteristicssuch as the frequency change is reduced. Here, the rectangular regionincluding the fixed portion and the rectangular region including theattaching portion refer to minimum rectangular regions including thefixed portion and the attaching portion, respectively.

Application Example 2

In the vibrator device according to the application example, it ispreferable that the vibration portion includes a region overlapping therectangular region including the fixed portion and the rectangularregion including the attaching portion in the plan view.

According to this application example, since the vibration portionincludes the region overlapping the rectangular region including thefixed portion and the rectangular region including the attachingportion, both ends of the vibration element are supported, and it ispossible to prevent the vibration portion from contacting the supportingmember and the substrate and to obtain the vibrator device having stablevibration characteristics.

Application Example 3

In the vibrator device according to the application example, it ispreferable that a relationship between the A1 and the A2 satisfies0.1≤(A2/A1)≤1.0.

According to this application example, it is possible to alleviate thedistortion due to the thermal stress caused by the difference in thethermal expansion coefficient between the supporting member and thesubstrate while maintaining mechanical strength to attach the supportingmember to the substrate, and to reduce the transfer of the distortion inwhich the substrate receives to the vibration element.

Application Example 4

In the vibrator device according to the application example, it ispreferable that the relationship between the A1 and the A2 satisfies0.5≤(A2/A1)≤0.8.

According to this application example, it is possible to alleviate thedistortion due to the thermal stress caused by the difference in thethermal expansion coefficient between the supporting member and thesubstrate while improving and maintaining more stably the mechanicalstrength to attach the supporting member to the substrate, and to reducethe transfer of the distortion in which the substrate receives to thevibration element.

Application Example 5

In the vibrator device according to the application example, it ispreferable that at least apart of the supporting member is made of thesame material as the vibration element.

According to this application example, since at least a part of thesupporting member is made of the same material as the vibration element,when the vibration element is attached to the supporting member, thedistortion due to the thermal stress caused by the difference in thethermal expansion coefficient can be reduced, and the influence of thedistortion from the supporting member can be further reduced.

Application Example 6

In the vibrator device according to the application example, it ispreferable that the supporting member includes a crystal material havinga first crystal orientation, the vibration element includes the samecrystal material as the crystal material of the supporting member and acrystal material having a second crystal orientation, and the firstcrystal orientation is different from the second crystal orientation inthe plan view.

According to this application example, since it is possible to increasethe Young's modulus as a composite by a combination between thesupporting member and the vibration element by making the crystalorientation of the supporting member different from the crystalorientation of the vibration element using the Young's modulus dependingon the crystal orientation, the vibration element is less susceptible tothe influence of the stress from the substrate, and the vibrator devicehaving the stable vibration characteristics can be obtained.

Application Example 7

In the vibrator device according to the application example, it ispreferable that an aspect ratio of the supporting member is differentfrom an aspect ratio of the vibration element in the plan view.

According to this application example, since the aspect ratio of thesupporting member is different from the aspect ratio of the vibrationelement, it is possible to provide a plurality of the fixed portions tothe supporting member and a plurality of the attaching portions to thesubstrate. Therefore, since it is possible to increase the areas of thefixed portions and the areas of the attaching portions, the attachingstrength between the supporting member and the vibration element, andthe attaching strength between the substrate and the supporting membercan be improved respectively, and the vibration element can be mountedstably on the substrate.

Application Example 8

In the vibrator device according to the application example, it ispreferable that the substrate includes a plurality of externalconnection portions, and A3≥A2 is satisfied in a case where an area of arectangular region including the plurality of external connectionportions is A3 in the plan view.

According to this application example, when the vibrator device ismounted on a mounting substrate of an electronic apparatus or the likethrough the external connection portion, since the area A2 including theattaching portion of the supporting member attached to the substrate issmaller than the area A3 including the plurality of external connectionportions, only the distortion related to the region of the attachingportion is transferred to the supporting member among distortions due tothe thermal stress caused by the difference in the thermal expansioncoefficient between the substrate of the vibrator device and themounting substrate. Therefore, it is possible to alleviate thedistortion due to the stress from the mounting substrate when thevibrator device is mounted on the mounting substrate of the electronicapparatus or the like, and to obtain the vibrator device having thestable vibration characteristics. Here, the rectangular region includingthe external connection portions refers to a minimum rectangular regionincluding the external connection portions.

Application Example 9

In the vibrator device according to the application example, it ispreferable that a relationship between the A2 and the A3 satisfies1≤100.

According to this application example, it is possible to make thedistortion due to the thermal stress caused by the difference in thethermal expansion coefficient between the substrate of the vibratordevice and the mounting substrate less likely to be transferred bymaking the area A2 including the attaching portion of the supportingmember attached to the substrate smaller than the area A3 including theplurality of external connection portions.

Application Example 10

In the vibrator device according to the application example, it ispreferable that a relationship between the A2 and the A3 satisfies 2≤5.

According to this application example, it is possible to make thedistortion due to the thermal stress caused by the difference in thethermal expansion coefficient between the substrate of the vibratordevice and the mounting substrate hard to be transferred while achievinga miniaturization.

Application Example 11

In the vibrator device according to the application example, it ispreferable that the vibration element includes a base portion, thevibration portion extending from the base portion, and a plurality ofsupporting arms extending from the base portion, and each of theplurality of supporting arms includes the fixed portion and a meanderingshape portion.

According to this application example, since the meandering shapeportion for alleviating the distortion generated during attaching thevibration element to the supporting arm extending from the base portionis included, it is possible to reduce the influence of the distortiondue to the thermal stress with the substrate through the supportingmember by deformation of the meandering shape portion when the fixedportion is attached to the supporting member.

Application Example 12

An oscillator according to this application example includes thevibrator device according to the application example described above,and an oscillation circuit that oscillates the vibrator device.

According to this application example, it is possible to obtain theoscillator capable of stably extracting a desired frequency by includingthe vibrator device in which the influence of the distortion due to thethermal stress when mounting the vibration element is reduced.

Application Example 13

A gyro sensor according to this application example includes thevibrator device according to the application example described above,and a drive circuit that drives the vibrator device.

According to this application example, it is possible to obtain the gyrosensor having a highly accurate detection function by including thevibrator device in which the influence of the distortion due to thethermal stress when mounting the vibration element is reduced.

Application Example 14

An electronic apparatus according to this application example includesthe vibrator device according to the application example describedabove.

According to this application example, it is possible to obtain a highperformance electronic apparatus by including the vibrator device inwhich the influence of the distortion due to the thermal stress whenmounting the vibration element is reduced.

Application Example 15

A vehicle according to this application example includes the vibratordevice according to the application example described above.

According to this application example, it is possible to obtain a highperformance vehicle by including the vibrator device in which theinfluence of the distortion due to the thermal stress when mounting thevibration element is reduced.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will be described with reference to the accompanyingdrawings, wherein like numbers reference like elements.

FIG. 1A is a schematic plan view illustrating a configuration of avibrator device according to a first embodiment.

FIG. 1B is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along the line P1-P1in FIG. 1A.

FIG. 1C is a schematic sectional view taken along the line P2-P2 in FIG.1A.

FIG. 1D is a schematic plan view illustrating a configuration of a rearsurface of FIG. 1A.

FIG. 2 is a diagram for describing a relationship between an AT cutquartz crystal substrate and crystal axes.

FIG. 3A is a schematic plan view illustrating a configuration of avibrator device according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 3B is a schematic sectional view taken along the line P3-P3 in FIG.3A.

FIG. 4A is a schematic plan view illustrating a configuration of avibrator device according to a third embodiment.

FIG. 4B is a schematic sectional view taken along the line P4-P4 in FIG.4A.

FIG. 5A is a schematic plan view illustrating a configuration of avibrator device according to a fourth embodiment.

FIG. 5B is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along the line P5-P5in FIG. 5A.

FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a configurationof an oscillator according to the embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a configurationof a gyro sensor according to the embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of amobile-type personal computer as an example of an electronic apparatus.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a mobilephone as an example of the electronic apparatus.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a digitalstill camera as an example of the electronic apparatus.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view schematically illustrating a vehicle as anexample of a vehicle.

DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, embodiments of the invention will be described withreference to drawings. The following description is one embodiment ofthe invention and does not limit the invention. In the followingrespective drawings, there are cases of employing a scale different froman actual scale in order to describe the drawings in an easy-tounderstand manner.

Vibrator Device

First Embodiment

As a vibrator device according to a first embodiment to a thirdembodiment of the invention, a vibrator device mounted with a vibrationelement configured to have an AT cut quartz crystal substrate that has amesa shape having projection portions in the center portion andgenerates a thickness shear vibration will be described as an example.

First, a vibrator device 1 according to the first embodiment of theinvention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1A to 1D.

FIG. 1A is a schematic plan view illustrating a configuration of avibrator device 1 according to the first embodiment. FIG. 1B is aschematic cross-sectional view taken along the line P1-P1 in FIG. 1A.FIG. 1C is a schematic sectional view taken along the line P2-P2 in FIG.1A. FIG. 1D is a schematic plan view illustrating a configuration of arear surface of FIG. 1A. FIG. 1A illustrates a state where a lid member42 is removed for convenience to describe an internal configuration ofthe vibrator device 1. For convenience of description, FIG. 4B referredto in FIG. 1A and the following illustrates X-axis, Y′-axis, and Z′-axisas three axes orthogonal to one another, and since each axis matches acrystal direction of the quartz crystal, it will be described in detailin FIG. 2 described below. In the following description, for convenienceof description, a plan view seen from the Y′-axis direction which is athickness direction of a vibration element 10 is also referred to simplyas “plan view”. For convenience of description, in the plan view seenfrom the Y′-axis direction (tip end direction of arrow), a surface of a+Y′-axis direction (arrow direction) will be described as the uppersurface, and a surface of a −Y′-axis direction (direction opposite toarrow direction) will be described as the lower surface.

As illustrated in FIGS. 1A to 1C, the vibrator device 1 according to thefirst embodiment is configured to have the vibration element 10, asupporting member 18 supporting the vibration element 10, and a packagebody 30 for housing the vibration element 10 attached to the supportingmember 18, and the supporting member 18 and the vibration element 10 arestacked in a cavity 38 of the package body 30 in this order.

The vibration element 10 is configured to have a vibration portion 12having a thicker thickness (length in Y′-axis direction) than aperipheral portion and having projected upper and lower surfaces, and athin portion 14 including a fixed portion 16 around the vibrationportion 12. Here, the fixed portion 16 of the vibration element 10refers to a region fixed in contact with an attaching member 22. Thevibration element 10 has a rectangular shape in a plan view and isprovided at a position where the vibration portion 12 is closer to oneend portion side than the center of the longitudinal direction (X-axisdirection), and the fixed portion 16 for attaching and fixing to thesupporting member 18 is provided at a position close to the other endportion side of the vibration element 10. Therefore, the vibrationelement 10 is supported by the supporting member 18 by attaching thefixed portion 16 to the supporting member 18.

A material configuring the vibration element 10 is the AT cut quartzcrystal substrate and has vibration characteristics excellent intemperature characteristics. The vibration portion 12 generates thethickness shear vibration by applying a voltage to an excitationelectrode (not illustrated) provided on the upper surface and the lowersurface of the vibration portion 12. Since the vibration portion 12 hasthe mesa shape having the projection portions, it is possible to preventvibration energy of the thickness shear vibration from leaking to thethin portion 14 other than the vibration portion 12 and to have stablevibration characteristics.

The supporting member 18 has a rectangular form in a plan view and hassubstantially the same area as the fixed portion 16 of the vibrationelement 10. An attaching portion 20 attached to a first substrate 32 ofthe package body 30 through an attaching member 24 is provided on thelower surface of the supporting member 18. Here, the attaching portion20 of the supporting member 18 refers to a region in contact with anattaching member 24. A material configuring the supporting member 18 isthe AT cut quartz crystal substrate similarly to the vibration element10. As a result, in a case where the vibration element 10 is attached tothe supporting member 18, a distortion due to a thermal stress issignificantly small.

The package body 30 is formed by stacking the first substrate 32 and asecond substrate 34 as the substrate, and amounting terminal 36 as anexternal connection portion. The package body 30 has the cavity 38 thatopens to a vibration element 10 side. It is possible to obtain thevibrator device 1 in which the inside of the cavity 38 is hermeticallysealed by attaching the supporting member 18, to which the vibrationelement 10 is attached, in the cavity 38 and attaching the lid member 42with a sealing member 44 such as borosilicate glass.

A material configuring the first substrate 32 and the second substrate34 is, for example, various ceramics such as oxide-based ceramics,nitride-based ceramics, and carbide-based ceramics.

A material configuring the mounting terminal 36 is subjected to platingwith nickel (Ni), gold (Au), or the like on a metal wiring material suchas tungsten (W) or molybdenum (Mo).

Two wirings electrically conducted with two mounting terminals 36 formedon the lower surface of the first substrate 32 is provided on the uppersurface of the first substrate 32, and one wiring is conductedelectrically with the excitation electrode formed on the upper surfaceof the vibration element 10 by wire bonding or the like. The excitationelectrode formed on the lower surface of the vibration element 10 isconducted electrically with the other wiring through a conductive layercontinuously formed on the upper surface, the lower surface, and theside surface of the attaching members 22 and 24 such as conductiveadhesive, and the supporting member 18. Therefore, when a voltage isapplied between two mounting terminals 36 formed on the lower surface ofthe first substrate 32, the voltage is applied to the excitationelectrode formed on the upper and lower surfaces of the vibrationelement 10 and the vibration element 10 can be excited.

Next, a mounting structure of the vibrator device 1 will be described indetail.

In the vibrator device 1, the attaching portion 20 of the supportingmember 18 is attached on the upper surface of the first substrate 32 asthe substrate configuring the package body 30 through the attachingmember 24, and the fixed portion 16 of the vibration element 10 isattached and fixed on the upper surface of the supporting member 18through the attaching member 22. Accordingly, since the vibrationelement 10 is mounted on the upper surface of the first substrate 32through the supporting member 18, it is possible to alleviate thedistortion due to the thermal stress caused by a difference in a thermalexpansion coefficient between the first substrate and the vibrationelement 10. A thermal expansion coefficient of the ceramic which is thematerial configuring the first substrate 32 is 7.5×10⁻⁶/K, and a thermalexpansion coefficient of the AT cut quartz crystal substrate which isthe material configuring the vibration element 10 is 13.2×10⁻⁶/K.

Since an area A2 of a rectangular region including the attaching portion20 of the supporting member 18 is designed to be smaller than an area A1of a rectangular region including the fixed portion 16 of the vibrationelement 10 such that A1≥A2, it is possible to reduce a distortion regiondue to the thermal stress caused by a difference in a thermal expansioncoefficient between the supporting member 18 and the first substrate 32,and the distortion due to the thermal stress is hardly transferred fromthe fixed portion 16 to the vibration portion 12 of the vibrationelement 10. Since the distortion due to the thermal stress in theattaching portion 20 is attenuated until it reaches the fixed portion 16as a thickness (length in Y′-axis direction) of the supporting member 18is thicker, it is possible to further reduce the influence of thedistortion due to the thermal stress.

It is preferable that a relationship between the area A1 of the fixedportion 16 and the area A2 of the attaching portion 20 satisfies0.1≤(A2/A1)≤1.0 in order to alleviate the distortion due to the thermalstress caused by the difference in the thermal expansion coefficientbetween the supporting member 18 and the first substrate 32 whilemaintaining mechanical strength to attach the supporting member 18 tothe first substrate 32.

More preferably, it is possible to improve and maintain more stably themechanical strength to attach the supporting member 18 to the firstsubstrate 32 by satisfying 0.5≤(A2/A1)≤0.8.

As illustrated in FIG. 1D, the mounting terminal 36 is provided as twoexternal connection portions in the center portion in a short sidedirection (Z′-axis direction) on the rear surface (lower surface offirst substrate 32) of the vibrator device 1. In a plan view, an area A3of a rectangular region including two mounting terminals 36 is designedto be larger than the area A2 including the attaching portion 20 of thesupporting member 18 attached to the first substrate 32 such that A3≥A2.Therefore, when the vibrator device 1 is mounted on a mounting substrateor the like on which an oscillation circuit and various parts aremounted, a distortion in only a region related to the area A2 of theattaching portion 20 is transferred to the fixed portion 16 amongdistortions due to the thermal stress caused by a difference in athermal expansion coefficient between the first substrate 32 of thevibrator device 1 and the mounting substrate generated between twomounting terminals 36. Accordingly, it is possible to alleviate thedistortion due to the thermal stress caused by the first substrate 32and the mounting substrate, and to reduce the influence of thedistortion due to the thermal stress.

It is preferable that a relationship between the area A3 of two mountingterminals 36 and the area A2 of the attaching portion 20 satisfies1≤(A3/A2)≤100 in order to significantly alleviate the distortion due tothe thermal stress caused by the first substrate 32 and the mountingsubstrate.

More preferably, while achieving a miniaturization, the distortion dueto the thermal stress caused by the first substrate 32 and the mountingsubstrate can be alleviated significantly, and the distortion due to thethermal stress can be hardly transferred to the vibration element 10 bysatisfying 2≤(A3/A2)≤5.

Next, a quartz crystal substrate configuring the vibration element 10will be described with reference to FIG. 2.

FIG. 2 is a diagram for describing a relationship between the AT cutquartz crystal substrate and crystal axes.

As illustrated in FIG. 2, the quartz crystal substrate configuring thevibration element 10 has the crystal axes X, Y, and Z orthogonal to oneanother, and the X-axis is referred to as electrical axis, the Y-axis isreferred to as mechanical axis, and the Z-axis is referred to as opticalaxis. The substrate is a flat plate cut along a plane obtained byrotating the XZ plane around the X-axis by a predetermined angle θ, andis a rotated Y-cut quartz crystal substrate.

In a case where the angle θ of the rotated Y-cut quartz crystalsubstrate is 35.25° (35° 15′), it is referred to as the AT cut quartzcrystal substrate, and has excellent temperature characteristics. Here,the AT cut quartz crystal substrate has the crystal axes X, Y, and Zorthogonal to one another, the thickness direction is Y′-axis, a planeincluding the X-axis and the Z′-axis orthogonal to the Y′-axis is aprincipal plane, and the thickness shear vibration is excited as a mainvibration on the principal plane of the vibration portion 12.

In the embodiment, the vibration element 10 configured by the AT cutquartz crystal substrate having the mesa shape is described as oneexample, but the invention is not limited thereto and a quartz crystalsubstrate having a flat plate shape may be employed.

The material configuring the vibration element 10 is not limited to theAT cut quartz crystal substrate, and may be a BT cut quartz crystalsubstrate having an angle θ of 49°. Further, it is not limited to thequartz crystal substrate, and may be lithium niobate (LiNbO₃), lithiumtantalate (LiTaO₃), lithium tetraborate (Li₂B₄O₇), potassium niobate(KNbO₃), gallium phosphate (GaPO₄), langasite crystal (La₃Ga₅SiO₁₄), orthe like.

As described above, it is possible to obtain the following effects withthe vibrator device 1 according to the first embodiment.

When the vibrator device 1 is subjected to a temperature cycle in whicha temperature change between low temperature and high temperaturerepeats, since the minimum rectangular area A2 including the attachingportion 20 of the supporting member 18 attached to the first substrate32 is smaller than the minimum rectangular area A1 including the fixedportion 16 of the vibration element 10 attached to the supporting member18, it is possible to alleviate the distortion due to the thermal stresscaused by the difference in the thermal expansion coefficient betweenthe supporting member 18 and the first substrate 32, and to reduce thetransfer of the distortion in which the first substrate 32 receives tothe vibration element 10. Accordingly, when the device is subjected tothe temperature cycle, it is possible to obtain the vibrator device 1 inwhich the change in the vibration characteristics such as the frequencychange is reduced.

When the vibration element 10 is mounted on the first substrate 32,since the supporting member 18 is interposed, it is possible toalleviate the distortion due to the thermal stress caused by thedifference in the thermal expansion coefficient between the vibrationelement 10 and the first substrate 32. Since the area A2 including theattaching portion 20 of the supporting member 18 attached to the firstsubstrate 32 is smaller than the area A1 including the fixed portion 16of the vibration element 10 attached to the supporting member 18, thatis, A1≥A2, when attaching the supporting member 18 to the firstsubstrate 32, it is possible to alleviate the distortion due to thethermal stress caused by the difference in the thermal expansioncoefficient between the supporting member 18 and the first substrate 32,and to reduce the transfer of the distortion when mounting thesupporting member 18 to the vibration element 10. Accordingly, it ispossible to obtain the vibrator device 1 in which deterioration of thevibration characteristics such as the frequency change before and aftermounting on the first substrate 32, and the aging change due to thedistortion during the mounting is reduced.

It is preferable that the relationship between the area A1 of the fixedportion 16 and the area A2 of the attaching portion 20 satisfies0.1≤(A2/A1)≤1.0, and more preferably, satisfies 0.5≤(A2/A1)≤0.8 in orderto alleviate the distortion due to the thermal stress caused by thedifference in the thermal expansion coefficient between the supportingmember 18 and the first substrate 32 while maintaining the mechanicalstrength to attach the supporting member 18 to the first substrate 32.

Since at least a part of the supporting member 18 is made of the samematerial as the vibration element 10, it is possible to reduce thedistortion due to the thermal stress caused by the difference in thethermal expansion coefficient, and to reduce the influence of thedistortion from the supporting member 18 in the state where thevibration element 10 is attached to the supporting member 18.

When the vibration element 10 is attached to the supporting member 18,since there is almost no distortion due to the thermal stress caused bythe difference in the thermal expansion coefficient, it is possible tofurther reduce the influence of the distortion during the attaching tothe supporting member 18.

When the vibrator device 1 is mounted on the mounting substrate of theelectronic apparatus or the like through the mounting terminal 36, sincethe area A2 including the attaching portion 20 of the supporting member18 attached to the first substrate 32 is smaller than the area A3including the plurality of the mounting terminals 36, only thedistortion related to the region of the attaching portion 20 istransferred to the supporting member 18 among distortions due to thethermal stress caused by the difference in the thermal expansioncoefficient between the first substrate 32 of the vibrator device 1 andthe mounting substrate. Therefore, it is possible to alleviate thedistortion due to the stress from the mounting substrate when mounted onthe mounting substrate of the electronic apparatus or the like, and toobtain the vibrator device 1 having the stable vibrationcharacteristics.

It is preferable that the relationship between the area A3 of theplurality of the mounting terminals 36 and the area A2 of the attachingportion 20 satisfies 1≤(A3/A2)≤100, and more preferably, satisfies2≤(A3/A2)≤5 in order to significantly alleviate the distortion due tothe thermal stress caused by the first substrate 32 and the mountingsubstrate.

Second Embodiment

Next, a vibrator device 1 a according to the second embodiment of theinvention will be described with reference to FIGS. 3A and 3B.

FIG. 3A is a schematic plan view illustrating a configuration of avibrator device 1 a according to a second embodiment, and FIG. 3B is aschematic sectional view taken along the line P3-P3 in FIG. 3A. FIG. 3Aillustrates a state where the lid member 42 is removed for convenienceto describe an internal configuration of the vibrator device 1 a. Thedifferences from the embodiment described above will be describedmainly, the same reference numerals will be assigned to the sameconfigurations, and the description of the same matters will be omitted.

The vibrator device 1 a according to the second embodiment has differentstructures and configurations of a supporting member 18 a, fixedportions 16 a and 16 b, and attaching portions 20 a and 20 b as comparedwith the vibrator device 1 according to the first embodiment.

As illustrated in FIGS. 3A and 3B, the vibrator device 1 a according tothe embodiment is configured to have the vibration element 10, arectangular supporting member 18 a in which the longitudinal directionis a direction (Z′-axis direction) intersecting with the longitudinaldirection (X-axis direction) of the vibration element 10, and thepackage body 30 for housing the vibration element 10 attached to thesupporting member 18 a.

Since an aspect ratio (defined as a ratio between a length of the X-axisdirection and a length of the Z′-axis direction in the embodiment) ofthe supporting member 18 a is the longitudinal direction of the Z′-axisdirection, and an aspect ratio of the vibration element 10 is thelongitudinal direction of the X-axis direction, the aspect ratio of thesupporting member 18 a is different from the aspect ratio of thevibration element 10. Accordingly, since the supporting member 18 a islong in the Z′-axis direction, it is possible to dispose a plurality ofthe fixed portions 16 a and 16 b of the vibration element 10 and aplurality of the attaching portions 20 a and 20 b of the supportingmember 18 a along the Z′-axis, and to improve attaching strength betweenthe supporting member 18 a and the vibration element 10, and attachingstrength between the first substrate 32 and the supporting member 18 a.

The vibration element 10 is attached and fixed to the supporting member18 a through the attaching members 22 a and 22 b such as the conductiveadhesive in two fixed portions 16 a and 16 b aligned along the Z′-axisprovided in the thin portion 14.

The supporting member 18 a to which the vibration element 10 is attachedis attached to the first substrate 32 as the substrate through attachingmembers 24 a and 24 b such as the conductive adhesive in two attachingportions 20 a and 20 b aligned along the Z′-axis.

Since an area A2 including the two attaching portions 20 a and 20 b ofthe supporting member 18 a attached to the first substrate 32 isdesigned to be smaller than an area A1 including the two fixed portions16 a and 16 b of the vibration element 10 attached to the supportingmember 18 a, it is possible to obtain the same effects as the firstembodiment.

When a crystal material of the supporting member 18 a is a first crystalorientation and a crystal material of the vibration element 10 is asecond crystal orientation, it is possible to increase the Young'smodulus as a composite by a combination between the supporting member 18a and the vibration element 10 by making the first crystal orientationof the supporting member 18 a different from the second crystalorientation of the vibration element 10 in a plan view using the Young'smodulus depending on the crystal orientation. Therefore, the vibrationelement 10 is less susceptible to the influence of the stress from thefirst substrate 32, and the vibrator device 1 a having the stablevibration characteristics can be obtained.

For example, when a gold bump, a solder bump, or the like is usedinstead of the conductive adhesive, it is possible to reduce thefrequency variation due to a gas generated during curing of theconductive adhesive by configuring the attaching members 22 a and 22 bfor attaching the vibration element 10 to the supporting member 18 a andthe attaching members 24 a and 24 b for attaching the supporting member18 a to the first substrate 32 with different materials. Accordingly, itis possible to obtain the vibrator device 1 a having the stablevibration characteristics.

As described above, it is possible to obtain the following effects withthe vibrator device 1 a according to the second embodiment.

Since the area A2 including the two attaching portions 20 a and 20 b ofthe supporting member 18 a attached to the first substrate 32 isdesigned to be smaller than the area A1 including the two fixed portions16 a and 16 b of the vibration element 10 attached to the supportingmember 18 a, that is, A1≥A2, when the vibrator device 1 a is subjectedto the temperature cycle such as an in-vehicle environment, it ispossible to alleviate the distortion due to the thermal stress caused bythe difference in the thermal expansion coefficient between thesupporting member 18 a and the first substrate 32, and to reduce thetransfer of the distortion in which the first substrate 32 receives tothe vibration element 10. Accordingly, when the device is subjected tothe temperature cycle, it is possible to obtain the vibrator device 1 ain which the change in the vibration characteristics such as thefrequency change is reduced.

When the supporting member 18 a is attached to the first substrate 32,it is possible to alleviate the distortion due to the thermal stresscaused by the difference in the thermal expansion coefficient betweenthe supporting member 18 a and the first substrate 32, and to reduce thetransfer of the distortion when mounting the supporting member 18 a tothe vibration element 10. Accordingly, it is possible to obtain thevibrator device 1 in which deterioration of the vibrationcharacteristics such as the frequency change before and after mountingon the first substrate 32, and the aging change due to the distortionduring the mounting is reduced.

Since the aspect ratio of the supporting member 18 a is different fromthe aspect ratio of the vibration element 10, it is possible to providethe plurality of the fixed portions 16 a and 16 b to the supportingmember 18 a and the plurality of the attaching portions 20 a and 20 b tothe first substrate 32. Therefore, since it is possible to increase theareas of the fixed portions 16 a and 16 b and the areas of the attachingportions 20 a and 20 b, the attaching strength between the supportingmember 18 a and the vibration element 10, and the attaching strengthbetween the first substrate 32 and the supporting member 18 a can beimproved respectively, and the vibration element 10 can be mountedstably on the first substrate 32.

It is possible to increase the Young's modulus as the composite by thecombination between the supporting member 18 a and the vibration element10 by making the first crystal orientation of the supporting member 18 adifferent from the second crystal orientation of the vibration element10 in a plan view using the Young's modulus depending on the crystalorientation. Therefore, the vibration element 10 is less susceptible tothe influence of the stress from the first substrate 32, and thevibrator device 1 a having the stable vibration characteristics can beobtained.

Since the difference in the thermal expansion coefficient between thesupporting member 18 a and the vibration element 10 can be madedifferent by making the crystal orientation of the supporting member 18a different from the crystal orientation of the vibration element 10, itis possible to configure the attaching members 22 a and 22 b forattaching the vibration element 10 to the supporting member 18 a and theattaching members 24 a and 24 b for attaching the supporting member 18 ato the first substrate 32 with different materials. Accordingly, it ispossible to reduce the influence of a gas or the like generated from theattaching members 22 a, 22 b, 24 a, and 24 b during the mounting, andobtain the vibrator device 1 a having the stable vibrationcharacteristics.

Third Embodiment

Next, a vibrator device 1 b according to a third embodiment of theinvention will be described with reference to FIGS. 4A and 4B.

FIG. 4A is a schematic plan view illustrating a configuration of avibrator device 1 b according to the third embodiment. FIG. 4B is aschematic sectional view taken along the line P4-P4 in FIG. 4A. FIG. 4Aillustrates a state where the lid member 42 is removed for convenienceto describe an internal configuration of the vibrator device 1 b. Thedifferences from the embodiments described above will be describedmainly, the same reference numerals will be assigned to the sameconfigurations, and the description of the same matters will be omitted.

The vibrator device 1 b according to the third embodiment has differentstructures and configurations of a vibration element 10 b, a supportingmember 18 b, fixed portions 17 a and 17 b, and attaching portions 21 aand 21 b as compared with the vibrator device 1 according to the firstembodiment.

As illustrated in FIGS. 4A and 4B, the vibrator device 1 b of theembodiment is configured to have the vibration element 10 b havingprojection portions in the center portion of the vibration element 10 bmade of the AT cut quartz crystal substrate, the supporting member 18 bhaving a recessed portion in the center portion of the supporting member18 b made of the AT cut quartz crystal substrate, and the package body30 for housing the vibration element 10 b attached to the supportingmember 18 b.

The vibration element 10 b has the rectangular shape in a plan view, thevibration portion 12 is disposed in the center portion of thelongitudinal direction (X-axis direction), and two fixed portions 17 aand 17 b for attaching to the supporting member 18 b are provided atpositions interposing the center of the vibration portion 12 in a planview, and in the thin portion 14 on a straight line L1 that intersectsat 120° counterclockwise with respect to the +X-axis direction.

The supporting member 18 b has substantially the same shape as thevibration element 10 b in a plan view, and has the recessed portion onthe upper surface of the vibration element 10 b side. This is to preventthe vibration portion 12 of the vibration element 10 b from contactingthe supporting member 18 b. In the supporting member 18 b, two attachingportions 21 a and 21 b for attaching to the first substrate 32 areprovided at the positions interposing the center of the vibrationportion 12 in a plan view, and on a straight line L2 that intersects at60° counterclockwise with respect to the +X-axis direction, in otherwords, the straight line L2 that intersects at 120° clockwise withrespect to the +X-axis direction. That is, in FIG. 4A, the two attachingportions 21 a and 21 b are provided respectively at a position of theend portion in the −Z′-axis direction on the +X-axis direction side withrespect to the center of the vibration portion 12, and at a position ofthe end portion in the +Z′-axis direction on the −X-axis direction sidewith respect to the center of the vibration portion 12. Here, the+X-axis direction of the vibration element 10 b and the +X-axisdirection of the supporting member 18 b are the same direction.

It is known that the AT cut quartz crystal substrate has almost nofrequency variation due to a compression stress at 60° and 120°counterclockwise with respect to the +X-axis direction in a plan view.This is considered a result of dependence on the Young's modulus in thein-plane direction of the AT cut quartz crystal substrate, and the twofixed portions 17 a and 17 b and the two the attaching portions 21 a and21 b are disposed on the straight lines L1 and L2 that intersect at 120°and 60° counterclockwise with respect to the +X-axis directionrespectively using the characteristics. As a result, the distortion dueto the thermal stress caused by the difference in the thermal expansioncoefficient between the supporting member 18 b and the first substrate32 generated between the two attaching portions 21 a and 21 b is hardlytransferred to the two fixed portions 17 a and 17 b since the two fixedportions 17 a and 17 b are separated from the straight line L2 on whichthe two attaching portions 21 a and 21 b are disposed. Therefore, it ispossible to make it difficult for the distortion due to the thermalstress caused by attaching of the supporting member 18 b to the firstsubstrate 32 to be transferred from the two fixed portions 17 a and 17 bto the vibration portion 12 of the vibration element 10 b. Further,since a direction in which the stress applied to the vibration element10 b is maximized is the direction of 60° counterclockwise with respectto +X-axis direction of the AT cut quartz crystal substrate, it ispossible to significantly suppress the frequency variation due to thestress generated in the substrate 32.

Since the area A2 including the two attaching portions 21 a and 21 b ofthe supporting member 18 b attached to the first substrate 32 isdesigned to be smaller than the area A1 including the two fixed portions17 a and 17 b of the vibration element 10 b attached to the supportingmember 18 b, it is possible to obtain the same effects as the firstembodiment.

Further, the vibration portion 12 is disposed so as to overlap therectangular region (A1) including the fixed portions 17 a and 17 b, andthe rectangular region (A2) including the attaching portions 21 a and 21b. Therefore, both ends in the longitudinal direction (X-axis direction)of the vibration element 10 b are supported, and it is possible toprevent the vibration portion 12 from contacting the supporting member18 b and the first substrate 32.

As described above, it is known that the AT cut quartz crystal substratehas the characteristics in which the frequency change is zero withrespect to the stress (distortion) from the direction of about 60° orabout 120° from the X-axis (about ±30° from Z′-axis) in a X-Z′ in-planerotation (around Y′-axis). Therefore, it is possible to significantlyalleviate the influence due to the distortion during the attaching tothe supporting member 18 b by disposing the two fixed portions 17 a and17 b at the position in the direction of about 60° or about 120° fromthe X-axis with the vibration portion 12 interposed therebetween. Forthe supporting member 18 b, it is possible to significantly alleviatethe influence of the frequency variation due to the distortion duringthe attaching to the first substrate 32 by disposing the two attachingportions 21 a and 21 b at the position in the direction of about 60° orabout 120° from the X-axis.

Since it is possible to keep the position where the two attachingportions 21 a and 21 b are disposed away from the position where the twofixed portions 17 a and 17 b are disposed by setting the crystaldirection of the supporting member 18 b in a direction intersecting withthe crystal direction of the vibration element 10 b, it is possible tosignificantly reduce the transfer of the distortion during the attachingto the first substrate 32 to the vibration portion 12 through the twofixed portions 17 a and 17 b.

As described above, it is possible to obtain the following effects withthe vibrator device 1 b according to the third embodiment.

Since the area A2 including the two attaching portions 21 a and 21 b ofthe supporting member 18 b attached to the first substrate 32 isdesigned to be smaller than the area A1 including the two fixed portions17 a and 17 b of the vibration element 10 b attached to the supportingmember 18 b, that is, A1≥A2, when the vibrator device 1 b is subjectedto the temperature cycle such as the in-vehicle environment, it ispossible to alleviate the distortion due to the thermal stress caused bythe difference in the thermal expansion coefficient between thesupporting member 18 b and the first substrate 32, and to reduce thetransfer of the distortion in which the first substrate 32 receives tothe vibration element 10 b. Accordingly, when the device is subjected tothe temperature cycle, it is possible to obtain the vibrator device 1 bin which the change in the vibration characteristics such as thefrequency change is reduced.

When the supporting member 18 b is attached to the first substrate 32,it is possible to alleviate the distortion due to the thermal stresscaused by the difference in the thermal expansion coefficient betweenthe supporting member 18 b and the first substrate 32, and to reduce thetransfer of the distortion when mounting the supporting member 18 b tothe vibration element 10 b. Accordingly, it is possible to obtain thevibrator device 1 b in which deterioration of the vibrationcharacteristics such as the frequency change before and after mountingon the first substrate 32, and the aging change due to the distortionduring the mounting is reduced.

Since the vibration portion 12 is disposed so as to overlap therectangular region (A1) including the fixed portions 17 a and 17 b, andthe rectangular region (A2) including the attaching portions 21 a and 21b, the both ends in the X-axis direction of the vibration element 10 bare supported, and it is possible to prevent the vibration portion 12from contacting the supporting member 18 b and the first substrate 32.Therefore, it is possible to obtain the vibrator device 1 b having thestable vibration characteristics.

It is possible to keep the position where the two attaching portions 21a and 21 b are disposed away from the position where the two fixedportions 17 a and 17 b are disposed by setting the crystal direction ofthe supporting member 18 b in the direction intersecting with thecrystal direction of the vibration element 10 b in a plan view.Therefore, it is possible to significantly reduce the transfer of thedistortion from the first substrate 32 to the vibration portion 12.

Fourth Embodiment

Next, a vibrator device 1 c according to a fourth embodiment of theinvention will be described with reference to FIGS. 5A and 5B citing avibrator device in which a vibration gyro element 100 having aconfiguration referred to as a double T type is mounted as an example.

FIG. 5A is a schematic plan view illustrating a configuration of avibrator device 1 c according to the fourth embodiment. FIG. 5B is aschematic cross-sectional view taken along the line P5-P5 in FIG. 5A.FIG. 5A illustrates a state where the lid member 142 is removed forconvenience to describe an internal configuration of the vibrator device1 c. In each drawing, for convenience of description, X-axis, Y-axis,and Z-axis as three axes orthogonal to one another are illustrated, anda plan view seen from the Z-axis direction is also referred to simply as“plan view”. The differences from the embodiments described above willbe described mainly, the same reference numerals will be assigned to thesame configurations, and the description of the same matters will beomitted.

The vibrator device 1 c according to the fourth embodiment has differentstructures and configurations of the vibration gyro element 100, asupporting member 102, fixed portions 150 a and 150 b, and attachingportions 152 a and 152 b as compared with the vibrator device 1according to the first embodiment.

As illustrated in FIGS. 5A and 5B, the vibrator device 1 c of theembodiment is configured to have the vibration gyro element 100 as thevibration element, the supporting member 102 supporting the vibrationgyro element 100, and a package body 130 for housing the vibration gyroelement 100 attached to the supporting member 102.

The vibration gyro element 100 is formed as a base material (materialconfiguring main portion) of the quartz crystal which is a piezoelectricmaterial. The quartz crystal has the X-axis is referred to as theelectrical axis, the Y-axis is referred to as the mechanical axis, andthe Z-axis is referred to as the optical axis.

The vibration gyro element 100 is cut along a plane defined by theX-axis and the Y-axis orthogonal to the quartz crystal axis, processedinto the flat plate shape, and has a predetermined thickness in theZ-axis direction orthogonal to the plane. The predetermined thickness isset appropriately depending on an oscillation frequency (resonancefrequency), an outer size, processability, or the like.

The flat plate forming the vibration gyro element 100 can allow an errorin cut angle from the quartz crystal to some extent in each of theX-axis, the Y-axis, and the Z-axis. For example, it is possible to use aflat plate cut by rotating in a range of 0° to 2° centering on theX-axis. The same applies to the Y-axis and the Z-axis.

The vibration gyro element 100 is formed by etching (wet etching or dryetching) using a photolithography technique. It is possible to take aplurality of the vibration gyro elements 100 from one the quartz crystalwafer.

As illustrated in FIG. 5A, the vibration gyro element 100 has theconfiguration referred to as the double T type.

The vibration gyro element 100 includes a base portion 110 located atthe center portion, a pair of detection vibrating arms 111 a and 111 bas the vibration portion in which one extends in the plus direction ofthe Y-axis and the other extends in the minus direction of the Y-axislinearly along the Y-axis from the base portion 110, a pair ofconnecting arms 113 a and 113 b in which one extends in the plusdirection of the X-axis and the other extends in the minus direction ofthe X-axis linearly along the Y-axis from the base portion 110 so as tobe orthogonal to the detection vibrating arms 111 a and 111 b, and eachpair of drive vibrating arms 114 a, 114 b, 115 a, and 115 b as thevibration portion in which one extends in the plus direction of theY-axis and the other extends in the minus direction of the Y-axislinearly along the Y-axis from the tip end sides of the respectiveconnecting arms 113 a and 113 b so as to be parallel to the detectionvibrating arms 111 a and 111 b.

In the vibration gyro element 100, a detection electrode (notillustrated) is formed on the detection vibrating arms 111 a and 111 b,and a drive electrode (not illustrated) is formed on the drive vibratingarms 114 a, 114 b, 115 a, and 115 b. In the vibration gyro element 100,the detection vibrating arms 111 a and 111 b configure a detectionvibration system for detecting an angular velocity, and the connectingarms 113 a and 113 b and the drive vibrating arms 114 a, 114 b, 115 a,and 115 b configure a drive vibration system for driving the vibrationgyro element 100.

Weight portions 112 a and 112 b are formed on respective tip endportions of the detection vibrating arms 111 a and 111 b, and weightportions 116 a, 116 b, 117 a, and 117 b are formed on respective tip endportions of the drive vibrating arms 114 a, 114 b, 115 a, and 115 b.With this, the vibration gyro element 100 achieves the miniaturizationand the improvement of detection sensitivity of the angular velocity.The weight portions 112 a and 112 b are included in the detectionvibrating arms 111 a and 111 b, and the weight portions 116 a, 116 b,117 a, and 117 b are included in the drive vibrating arms 114 a, 114 b,115 a, and 115 b.

Further, in the vibration gyro element 100, four supporting arms 120 a,120 b, 121 a, and 121 b extend from the base portion 110.

The supporting arm 120 a includes a meandering shape portion 120 d thatextends to the minus side in the X-axis direction from an outer edge ofthe base portion 110 between the connecting arm 113 a and the detectionvibrating arm 111 a, then extends to the plus side in the Y-axisdirection, then extends to the plus side in the X-axis direction, andthen extends to the plus side in the Y-axis direction again.

The supporting arm 120 b includes a meandering shape portion 120 c thatextends to the plus side in the X-axis direction from an outer edge ofthe base portion 110 between the connecting arm 113 b and the detectionvibrating arm 111 a, then extends to the plus side in the Y-axisdirection, then extends to the minus side in the X-axis direction, andthen extends to the plus side in the Y-axis direction again.

The supporting arm 121 a includes a meandering shape portion 121 d thatextends to the minus side in the X-axis direction from an outer edge ofthe base portion 110 between the connecting arm 113 a and the detectionvibrating arm 111 b, then extends to the minus side in the Y-axisdirection, then extends to the plus side in the X-axis direction, andthen extends to the minus side in the Y-axis direction again.

The supporting arm 121 b includes a meandering shape portion 121 c thatextends to the plus side in the X-axis direction from an outer edge ofthe base portion 110 between the connecting arm 113 b and the detectionvibrating arm 111 b, then extends to the minus side in the Y-axisdirection, then extends to the minus side in the X-axis direction, andthen extends to the minus side in the Y-axis direction again.

Each of supporting arms 120 a, 120 b, 121 a, and 121 b of the vibrationgyro element 100 is rotationally symmetric with respect to the center ofgravity G of the vibration gyro element 100. Specifically, thesupporting arm 120 a and the supporting arm 121 b have a rotationallysymmetrical shape with respect to the center of gravity G of thevibration gyro element 100 as a rotation center, and the supporting arm121 a and the supporting arm 120 b have the rotationally symmetricalshape with respect to the center of gravity G of the vibration gyroelement 100 as the rotation center.

The tip end portions of the supporting arms 120 a and 120 b areconnected to a supporting portion 122 located on the plus side withrespect to the detection vibrating arm 111 a in the Y-axis direction andextending along the X-axis, and the tip end portions of the supportingarms 121 a and 121 b are connected to a supporting portion 123 locatedon the minus side with respect to the detection vibrating arm 111 b inthe Y-axis direction and extending along the X-axis.

Three fixed portions 150 a are provided in the supporting portion 122along the X-axis, and three fixed portions 150 b are provided in thesupporting portion 123 along the X-axis.

It is preferable from the viewpoint of balance that the supportingportion 122 and the supporting portion 123 have the rotationallysymmetrical shape with respect to the center of gravity G of thevibration gyro element 100 as the rotation center.

The supporting member 102 has the rectangular form in a plan view andhas substantially the same area as a rectangular region including thesupporting portions 122 and 123 of the vibration gyro element 100. Inthe supporting member 102, three attaching portions 152 a and 152 b areprovided respectively on a surface of the supporting member 102 oppositeto a surface facing the vibration gyro element 100, on both end sides inthe direction (Y-axis direction) to which the detection vibrating arms111 a and 111 b of the vibration gyro element 100 extend, along thedirection (X-axis direction) intersecting with the direction to whichthe detection vibrating arms 111 a and 111 b extend.

The three attaching portion 152 a provided on the plus side in theY-axis direction on the surface of the supporting member 102 opposite tothe surface facing the vibration gyro element 100 are disposed to facethe three fixed portions 150 a provided in the supporting portion 122 ofthe vibration gyro element 100, respectively. The three attachingportion 152 b provided on the minus side in the Y-axis direction on thesurface of the supporting member 102 opposite to the surface facing thevibration gyro element 100 are disposed to face the three fixed portions150 b provided in the supporting portion 123 of the vibration gyroelement 100, respectively.

The vibration gyro element 100 is attached to the supporting member 102through an attaching member 104 such as the conductive adhesive in thethree fixed portions 150 a and 150 b aligned along the X-axis providedin the supporting portions 122 and 123.

The supporting member 102 to which the vibration gyro element 100 isattached is attached to a first substrate 132 of the package body 130through an attaching member 106 such as the conductive adhesive in thethree attaching portions 152 a and 152 b aligned along the X-axis atboth ends in the Y-axis direction of the supporting member 102.

Since an area A2 including six attaching portions 152 a and 152 b of thesupporting member 102 attached to the first substrate 132 is designed tobe smaller than an area A1 including six fixed portions 150 a and 150 bof the vibration gyro element 100 attached to the supporting member 102,it is possible to obtain the same effects as the first embodiment.

Further, the detection vibrating arms 111 a and 111 b and the drivevibrating arms 114 a, 114 b, 115 a, and 115 b as the vibration portionare disposed so as to overlap a rectangular region (A1) including thefixed portions 150 a and 150 b and a rectangular region (A2) includingthe attaching portions 152 a and 152 b. Therefore, the vicinity ofvibration regions (detection vibrating arms 111 a and 111 b and thedrive vibrating arms 114 a, 114 b, 115 a, and 115 b) is supported, andit is possible to prevent the vibration regions from contacting thesupporting member 102 and the first substrate 132.

As described above, the following effects can be obtained with thevibrator device 1 c according to the fourth embodiment.

Since the area A2 including the six attaching portions 152 a and 152 bof the supporting member 102 attached to the first substrate 132 isdesigned to be smaller than the area A1 including the six fixed portions150 a and 150 b of the vibration gyro element 100 attached to thesupporting member 102, that is, A1≥A2, when the vibrator device 1 c issubjected to the temperature cycle such as the in-vehicle environment,it is possible to alleviate the distortion due to the thermal stresscaused by the difference in the thermal expansion coefficient betweenthe supporting member 102 and the first substrate 132, and to reduce thetransfer of the distortion in which the first substrate 132 receives tothe vibration gyro element 100. Accordingly, when the device issubjected to the temperature cycle, it is possible to obtain thevibrator device 1 c in which the change in the vibration characteristicssuch as the frequency change is reduced.

When the supporting member 102 is attached to the first substrate 132,it is possible to alleviate the distortion due to the thermal stresscaused by the difference in the thermal expansion coefficient betweenthe supporting member 102 and the first substrate 132, and to reduce thetransfer of the distortion when mounting the supporting member 102 tothe vibration gyro element 100. Accordingly, it is possible to obtainthe vibrator device 1 c in which deterioration of the vibrationcharacteristics such as the frequency change before and after mountingon the first substrate 132, and the aging change due to the distortionduring the mounting is reduced.

Since the meandering shape portions 120 c, 120 d, 121 c, and 121 d foralleviating the distortion generated during attaching the vibration gyroelement 100 to the supporting arms 120 a, 120 b, 121 a, and 121 bextending from the base portion 110 are included, it is possible toreduce the influence of the distortion due to the thermal stress duringthe attaching the vibration gyro element 100 by deformation of themeandering shape portions 120 c, 120 d, 121 c, and 121 d when the fixedportions 150 a and 150 b are attached to the supporting member 102.

The vibration regions (detection vibrating arms 111 a and 111 b and thedrive vibrating arms 114 a, 114 b, 115 a, and 115 b) are disposed so asto overlap the rectangular region (A1) including the fixed portions 150a and 150 b and the rectangular region (A2) including the attachingportions 152 a and 152 b. Therefore, the vicinity of the vibrationregions is supported, and it is possible to prevent the vibration regionfrom contacting the supporting member 102 and the first substrate 132.Therefore, it is possible to obtain the vibrator device 1 c having thestable vibration characteristics.

Oscillator

Next, an oscillator 200 including at least one of vibrator devices 1 to1 b according to one embodiment of the invention will be described withreference to FIG. 6.

FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a structure ofthe oscillator 200 including the vibrator device 1 of the embodiment ofthe invention. For convenience of description, the X-axis, the Y-axis,and the Z-axis as three axes orthogonal to one another are illustrated.

The oscillator 200 is configured to have the vibrator device 1, an ICchip (chip part) 70 having the oscillation circuit for oscillating thevibrator device 1, a package body 50 for housing the vibrator device 1and the IC chip 70 in a cavity 58, and a lid member 62 made of glass,ceramics, metal, or the like.

As illustrated in FIG. 6, the package body 50 is formed by stacking afirst substrate 52, a second substrate 54, and a mounting terminal 56.The package body 50 has the cavity 58 that opens to the vibrator device1 and the IC chip 70 side.

A plurality of internal electrodes 60 are provided on a surface of thecavity 58 side on the first substrate 52 corresponding to the mountingsubstrate or the like, and a plurality of mounting terminals 56 areprovide on a surface on a side opposite to the surface of the cavity 58side of the first substrate 52. The internal electrodes 60 and themounting terminals 56 are conducted electrically through a penetrationelectrode and an interlayer wiring (not illustrated).

In the cavity 58 of the package body 50, the vibrator device 1 isattached on the internal electrodes 60 provided in the first substrate52 through an attaching member 66 such as the adhesive havingconductivity, and the IC chip 70 is attached and fixed on the firstsubstrate 52 through an attaching member 68 such as a brazing materialor the adhesive. The IC chip 70 is conducted electrically with theinternal electrodes 60 by bonding wires 72. The inside of the cavity 58is hermetically sealed by attaching the lid member 62 with a sealingmember 64 such as borosilicate glass.

The IC chip 70 has the oscillation circuit for controlling theoscillation of the vibrator device 1 (vibration element 10), and thevibration element 10 can be oscillated and a predetermined oscillationfrequency can be output by applying a voltage to the vibration element10 through the internal electrodes 60 by the oscillation circuit.

Accordingly, it is possible to obtain the oscillator 200 capable ofstably extracting a desired resonance frequency by including thevibrator devices 1 to 1 b in which the influence of the distortion dueto the thermal stress during the mounting of the vibration elements 10and 10 b is reduced.

Gyro Sensor

Next, a gyro sensor 300 including the vibrator device 1 c (vibrationgyro element 100) according to one embodiment of the invention will bedescribed with reference to FIG. 7.

FIG. 7 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a structure ofthe gyro sensor 300 including the vibrator device 1 c of the embodimentof the invention. For convenience of description, the X-axis, theY-axis, and the Z-axis as three axes orthogonal to one another areillustrated, and are the same as the axes used in FIGS. 5A and 5B.

As illustrated in FIG. 7, the gyro sensor 300 is configured to have thevibration gyro element 100, the supporting member 102, an IC chip 196having a drive circuit for driving the vibration gyro element 100, apackage body 180, and a lid member 192.

The package body 180 formed of the ceramics or the like and having theinside of a cavity 188 configured by three recessed portions is formedby stacking a first substrate 181, a second substrate 182, a thirdsubstrate 183, the fourth substrate 184, and mounting terminals 186.

In the cavity 188 of the package body 180, the IC chip 196 is attachedon the first substrate 181 through an attaching member 197 such as thebrazing material or the adhesive. The IC chip 196 is conductedelectrically with an internal electrodes 190 provided in the secondsubstrate 182 by bonding wires 198. The IC chip 196 includes the drivecircuit for driving and vibrating the vibration gyro element 100 and adetection circuit for detecting a detection vibration generated in thevibration gyro element 100 when an angular velocity is applied.

In the vibration gyro element 100, similarly to the vibrator device 1 cdescribed above, six fixed portions 150 a and 150 b provided in thesupporting portions 122 and 123 are attached to the supporting member102 through the attaching member 104. In the supporting member 102 towhich the vibration gyro element 100 is attached, six attaching portions152 a and 152 b provided in end portions in the Y-axis direction of thesupporting member 102 are attached on the third substrate 183 throughthe attaching member 106.

An internal electrode (not illustrated) is provided in the thirdsubstrate 183, and is conducted electrically with a drive electrode anda detection electrode (not illustrated) provided in the vibration gyroelement 100. The internal electrode is conducted electrically with theinternal electrodes 190 provided on the second substrate 182 and themounting terminals 186 provided on the first substrate 181 through thepenetration electrode and the interlayer wiring (not illustrated).

The inside of the cavity 188 of the gyro sensor 300 is maintained in asubstantially vacuum or reduced pressure atmosphere and is hermeticallysealed by attaching a lid member 193 with a sealing member 194 such asthe borosilicate glass.

Accordingly, it is possible to obtain the gyro sensor 300 having ahighly accurate detection function by including the vibrator device 1 cin which the influence of the distortion due to the thermal stress isreduced.

Electronic Apparatus

Next, an electronic apparatus in which at least one of vibrator devices1 to 1 c according to one embodiment of the invention is employed willbe described with reference to FIGS. 8, 9, and 10. The followingexamples illustrate only one vibrator device 1, but two or more vibratordevices 1 to 1 c may be mounted, the two or more vibrator devices 1 to 1c may be the same, or different two or more vibrator devices 1 to 1 cmay be employed.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view schematically illustrating a configurationof a mobile-type (or note-type) personal computer as the electronicapparatus including the vibrator device 1 according to the embodiment.In the figure, a personal computer 1100 is configured by a main bodyportion 1104 including a keyboard 1102 and a display unit 1106 includinga display 1000, and the display unit 1106 is supported rotatably withrespect to the main body portion 1104 through a hinge structure portion.In such personal computer 1100, the vibrator device 1 functioning as areference clock or the like is included.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view schematically illustrating a configurationof a mobile phone (including personal handyphone system (PHS) andsmartphone) as the electronic apparatus including the vibrator device 1according to one embodiment of the invention. In the figure, a mobilephone 1200 includes a plurality of operation buttons 1202, a receptionport 1204, and a transmission port 1206, and the display 1000 isdisposed between the operation buttons 1202 and the reception port 1204.In such mobile phone 1200, the vibrator device 1 functioning as thereference clock or the like is included.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view schematically illustrating a configurationof a digital still camera as the electronic apparatus including thevibrator device 1 according to one embodiment of the invention. Thefigure also briefly illustrates a connection with external apparatuses.A digital still camera 1300 photoelectrically converts an optical imageof a subject with an image capturing element such as a charge coupleddevice (CCD) to generate a captured image signal (image signal).

The display 1000 is provided on the back of a case (body) 1302 in thedigital still camera 1300 and is configured to perform display based onthe captured image signal of the CCD, and the display 1000 functions asa finder displaying the subject as an electronic image. A lightreceiving unit 1304 including an optical lens (image capturing opticalsystem), the CCD, and the like is provided on the front side (back sidein figure) of the case 1302.

When a photographer confirms a subject image displayed on the display1000 and presses a shutter button 1306, a captured image signal of theCCD at the time is transmitted and stored in a memory 1308. In thedigital still camera 1300, video signal output terminals 1312 and aninput output terminal for data communication are provided on the side ofthe case 1302. As illustrated in the figure, a television monitor 1330is connected to the video signal output terminal 1312, and a personalcomputer 1340 is connected to the input output terminal 1314 for datacommunication as necessary, respectively. Further, it is configured tooutput the captured image signal stored in the memory 1308 to thetelevision monitor 1330 or the personal computer 1340 by a predeterminedoperation. In such digital still camera 1300, the vibrator device 1functioning as the reference clock or the like is included.

As described above, it is possible to obtain a high performanceelectronic apparatus by including the vibrator devices 1 to 1 c in whichthe influence of the distortion due to the thermal stress is reduced asthe electronic apparatus.

The vibrator devices 1 to 1 c according to one embodiment of theinvention can be employed in an electronic apparatus such as an ink jetejecting apparatus (for example, inkjet printer), a laptop-type personalcomputer, a television, a video camera, a car navigation apparatus, apager, an electronic notebook (including communication function), anelectronic dictionary, an electronic calculator, an electronic gameapparatus, a workstation, a video telephone, a monitoring televisionmonitor, an electronic binoculars, a point of sale (POS) terminal, amedical apparatus (for example, an electronic thermometer, asphygmomanometer, a blood glucose meter, an electrocardiogrammeasurement apparatus, an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, and anelectronic endoscope), a fish finder, various measurement apparatuses,instruments (for example, instruments of a vehicle, an aircraft, or aship), and a flight simulator in addition to the personal computer 1100(mobile-type personal computer) in FIG. 8, the mobile phone 1200 in FIG.9, and the digital still camera 1300 in FIG. 10.

Vehicle

Next, a vehicle in which the vibrator devices 1 to 1 c according to oneembodiment of the invention are employed will be described.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view schematically illustrating a vehicle 1400as an example of the vehicle according to the invention. The vibratordevice 1 is included in the vehicle 1400. The vibrator device 1 can beemployed widely in an electronic control unit (ECU) 1410 such as akeyless entry, an immobilizer, a navigation system, an air conditioner,an antilock brake system (ABS), a tire pressure monitoring system(TPMS), engine control, a battery monitor for a hybrid vehicle or anelectric vehicle, and a vehicle body altitude control system.

As described above, it is possible to obtain a high performance vehicleby including the vibrator devices 1 to 1 b in which the influence of thedistortion due to the thermal stress is reduced as the vehicle.

The vibrator devices 1 to 1 c of the embodiments of the invention, theoscillator 200, the gyro sensor 300, the electronic apparatus (1100,1200, and 1300), and the vehicle (1400) are described based on theillustrated embodiments, but the invention is not limited thereto, andthe configuration of each portion can be replaced by an arbitraryconfiguration having the same function. Another arbitrary component maybe added to the invention. The respective embodiments described abovemay be combined appropriately.

What is claimed is:
 1. A vibrator device comprising: a vibrationelement; a supporting member to which the vibration element is attachedvia a first attaching member; and a substrate to which the supportingmember is attached via a second attaching member, wherein A1≥A2 issatisfied; an area of a rectangular region including the firstattachment member is the A1; and an area of a rectangular regionincluding the second attaching member is the A2 in a plan view.
 2. Thevibrator device according to claim 1, wherein the vibration elementincludes a vibration member, and the vibration member includes a regionoverlapping the rectangular region including the first attachment memberand the rectangular region including the second attaching member, in theplan view.
 3. The vibrator device according to claim 1, wherein0.1≤(A2/A1)≤1.0 is satisfied.
 4. The vibrator device according to claim3, where 0.5≤(A2/A1)≤0.8 is satisfied.
 5. The vibrator device accordingto claim 1, wherein at least a part of the supporting member is made ofthe same material as the vibration element.
 6. The vibrator deviceaccording to claim 5, wherein the supporting member includes a firstcrystal material having a first crystal orientation, and the vibrationelement includes a second crystal material having a second crystalorientation that is different from the first crystal orientation in theplan view.
 7. The vibrator device according to claim 1, wherein anaspect ratio of the supporting member is different from an aspect ratioof the vibration element in the plan view.
 8. The vibrator deviceaccording to claim 1, wherein the substrate includes a plurality ofexternal connectors, and wherein A3≥A2 is satisfied; and an area of arectangular region including the plurality of external connectors is theA3 in the plan view.
 9. The vibrator device according to claim 8,wherein 1≤(A2/A3)=100 is satisfied.
 10. The vibrator device according toclaim 8, wherein 2≤(A3/A2)≤5 is satisfied.
 11. An oscillator comprising:the vibrator device according to claim 1; and an oscillation circuitconfigured to oscillate the vibrator device.
 12. An electronic apparatuscomprising: the vibrator device according to claim 1, the vibratordevice being configured to generate a clock signal; a display; and acase that housed the vibrator device and the display.
 13. A vehiclecomprising: the vibrator device according to claim 1; and an electroniccontrol unit configured to control vehicle components.
 14. A vibratordevice comprising: a vibration element; a supporting member to which thevibration element is attached via a plurality of first attachingmembers; and a substrate to which the supporting member is attached viaa plurality of second attaching members, wherein A1≥A2 is satisfied; anarea of a rectangular region including the plurality of first attachingmembers is the A1; and an area of a rectangular region including theplurality of second attaching members is the A2 in a plan view seen froma thickness direction of the vibration element.
 15. The vibrator deviceaccording to claim 14, wherein the vibration element includes avibration member, and the vibration member includes a region overlappingthe rectangular region including the plurality of first attachingmembers and the rectangular region including the plurality of secondattaching members in the plan view.
 16. The vibrator device according toclaim 14, wherein 0.1≤(A2/A1)≤1.0 is satisfied.
 17. The vibrator deviceaccording to claim 14, wherein at least a part of the supporting memberis made of the same material as the vibration element.
 18. The vibratordevice according to claim 17, wherein the supporting member includes afirst crystal material having a first crystal orientation, and thevibration element includes a second crystal material having a secondcrystal orientation that is different from the first crystal orientationin the plan view.
 19. The vibrator device according to claim 14, whereinthe substrate includes a plurality of external connectors, and whereinA3≥A2 is satisfied; and an area of a rectangular region including theplurality of external connectors is the A3 in the plan view.
 20. Anoscillator comprising: the vibrator device according to claim 14; and anoscillation circuit configured to oscillate the vibrator device.